Why Jon Bernthal Decided To Play The Punisher In The MCU

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is constantly expanding and growing. In addition to each exciting film installment, there are also quite a few TV shows- the best of which air over on Netflix. While the main characters in Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Luke Cage have all captured our attention, the supporting ones may have garnered even more fan adoration. In particular, Jon Bernthal's Punisher character became so popular that he will be granted his own spinoff on the streaming service. But it turns out that the Walking Dead alumnus wasn't too keen on the superhero genre, and had to be convinced to take the role of Frank Castle in Daredevil.

Jon Bernthal recently sat down with the good folks at GQ to discuss his various acting projects, both old and new. Regarding his participation in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the actor said the following,

I'm working on The Punisher now. You know, this whole superhero-comic-book thing is something I had zero interest in being a part of. The guys that I really, really respect as actors seem to have kind of purposely stayed away from that. I don't mean that I'm above that or anything, just that it was not for me. But then when I got to know a little bit about this character... He ain't got a fucking cape. He ain't got any superpowers. He's a fucking tortured, angry father and husband who's living in this unbelievable world of darkness and loss and torment. Frank Castle resonates with me.

It looks like we have the writers of Daredevil to thank for bringing Jon Bernthal back to the small screen. The Punisher is truly like no other "hero", and I couldn't imagine another actor playing the role of Frank Castle.

Jon Bernthal's favorite aspects about Frank Castle echoes our own. In a universe that contains plenty of superpowered characters and larger than life heroes, Punisher stands apart. Rather than super strength and the ability of flight, Castle only has his weapons training and vast arsenal to take out the bad guys.

The Punisher also has no problem using drastic and violent measures to achieve his goals. Breaking the typical code of heroes not killing, The Punisher uses deadly force when taking out various gangsters and criminals. In the comics, he's been known to kill, extort, blackmail, and everything in between in order to dish out his particular brand of vigilante justice.

It should be interesting to see how The Punisher continues to grow with his new series. It's currently unclear if he'll be apart of the Defenders miniseries, or if Netflix will continue his story strictly through the spinoff. While his future in the MCU remains a bit unclear, there is no doubt that Jon Bernthal will bring his superior acting abilities and understanding of dark characters to the table.